Design Archives

Grey Group Signage and Environmental Graphics

Description

In December 2009, Grey Group, one of the largest marketing communications companies in the world, relocated to a new state-of-the-art headquarters in the former International Toy Center in New York’s Flatiron District. Pentagram developed a playful program of environmental graphics for the space that promotes the creativity of the company’s various divisions and unifies the loft-like floors into a cohesive environment.

The interiors use different materials for each division or department on each floor. The environmental graphics use these same materials—wood, glass, metal and polymer—in ways that suggest the personalities of the different divisions. The signage mixes the materials with elements of reflection, transparency, lighting and pattern to create a series of optical illusions that set each department apart.

Juror Notes

Very fun and unexpected. Loved the restroom signs!

Unexpected brand presentations, including the neon deconstructed lace sealed in a glass cube, are the highlight of this tongue-in-cheek signage system.